Meet Our OTT/CTV Advertising Platform
Welcome to our Blog Series! We’re excited to share regular updates with you about a particular facet of our holistic omnichannel OTT advertising platform. This week, we’re exploring some of the common perceived challenges of adopting CTV, and how to overcome them.
OTT/CTV Adoption Challenges
With any new format, approach, or idea, challenges with adoption are sure to follow. No matter how great an opportunity, organizational hesitancy, general confusion/lack of knowledge, or questions about quality and resources can hinder excitement.
In a recent poll by Nielsen, respondents were asked to rate their biggest challenges when it comes to adopting Over the top (OTT)/Connected TV (CTV) advertising.
Here are some of the key challenges respondents rated:
The results show a largely neutral response, with some topics posing a larger challenge than others.
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While many are confident in their ability to access quality CTV inventory at scale, or efficiently plan their media, we want to walk through how we are addressing each of the identified challenges on the Smaato platform.
1. Internal Knowledge Gaps and Organizational Buy-In
The OTT/CTV space is quickly evolving. It can be difficult for some companies to keep up at first with all the changes. For marketers, adopting a more omnichannel spend strategy that includes CTV (connected TV) and video placements is a fantastic way to reach engaged audiences. For publishers, monetizing OTT/CTV inventory offers a valuable (and lucrative) alternative to subscription models. We’ve put together some complimentary resources for publishers and marketers alike, along with our OTT/CTV Advertising eBook to help educate stakeholders on the power of OTT/CTV advertising.
2. Measurement Capabilities
Measurement for TV has always been a challenge. Is the content that’s playing reaching the right audience, or did they get up for a snack, or staring at their phone? At Smaato, we are able to offer cross-screen video completion rate capabilities, to help marketers measure campaign performance across devices. We strongly believe that contextual targeting is the future, and this is a step towards reaching audiences based on what they’re watching, not who they are.
For now, the IAB only offers open measurement for mobile web, in-app, and desktop web for now. We are working closely with them to help introduce Open Measurement for CTV in the future through a unique CTV SDK.
3. Media Planning Efficiency
We’ve made some changes to the Smaato OTT/CTV advertising platform since its launch to make it even easier for marketers to plan ahead. We recently introduced OTT Line Items in SPX, which allows publishers to set specific targeting parameters. As a result, marketers and advertisers can now work with schedulers on the publisher side to do media planning and upfronts on CTV content, with frequency capping, pacing, and impression capping capabilities. This functionality is available across OTT devices, on both VOD and LIVE content, and on the ad-pod and ad-slot level.
4. Audience Targeting
Shifting privacy laws are driving a demand for contextual targeting. At Smaato, we recommend that demand partners look at the bid request’s content object. Why? Our publishers specify content ID, title, genre, rating, category, and more. With this information, marketers can make informed bids, and target specific campaigns to more relevant audiences. This is a perfect opportunity to match campaign creative to specific episodes, movies, and more to help deliver contextually relevant ad creative to attentive audiences.
5. Ad Inventory Quality
We’re proud of our inventory here at Smaato. In fact, Smaato’s supply inventory is some of the highest quality in the entire market. Our Market Quality team thoroughly vets all potential inventory before it is even considered for activation, to help ensure a clean marketplace.
6. Ad Inventory Scale
Scale can be a challenge for some platforms, but not Smaato’s. We receive over 3 billion OTT ad requests a day, and we’re just getting started. Our platform is built with unique features, like ad-podding capabilities, which publishers love because it gives them more control over their inventory. Our platform is built to grow with you, making it easier for businesses to scale.
7. Overlap With Linear TV
OTT/CTV gives viewers much more control over their content consumption. While there may be some overlap with Linear, we expect that as OTT/CTV’s popularity continues to grow, the demand for Linear TV alone will decrease. The Smaato platform covers VOD, Live Linear, and Addressable TV. To make it easier for marketers, advertisers, and DSPs, each is separated and clearly labeled to ensure efficient buying, accurate measurement, and reporting functionality.
As You Can See, Smaato Can Help.
Ready to dive into all things CTV?
We put together an FAQ to cover off on additional questions you might have. Or, feel free to check out our complimentary eBook, which offers a free guide to OTT/CTV Advertising.
